Metamaterials are typically described as materials with ’unusual’ wave propagation properties. Originally developed for electromagnetic waves, these materials have also spread into the field of acoustic wave guiding and cloaking, with the most relevant of these ’unusual’ properties, being the so called band-gap phenomenon. A band-gap signifies a frequency region where elastic waves cannot propagate through the material, which in principle, could be used to protect buildings from earthquakes. Based on this, two relevant concepts have been proposed in the field of seismic engineering, namely: metabarriers, and metamaterial-based foundations. This thesis deals with the development of the Metafoundation, a metamaterial-based foundation system for the seismic protection of fuel storage tanks against excessive base shear and pipeline rupture. Note that storage tanks have proven to be highly sensitive to earthquakes, can trigger sever economic and environmental consequences in case of failure and were therefore chosen as a superstructure for this study. Furthermore, when tanks are protected with traditional base isolation systems, the resulting horizontal displacements, during seismic action, may become excessively large and subsequently damage connected pipelines. A novel system to protect both, tank and pipeline, could significantly augment the overall safety of industrial plants. With the tank as the primary structure of interest in mind, the Metafoundation was conceived as a locally resonant metamaterial with a band gap encompassing the tanks critical eigenfrequency. The initial design comprised a continuous concrete matrix with embedded resonators and rubber inclusions, which was later reinvented to be a column based structure with steel springs for resonator suspension. After investigating the band-gap phenomenon, a parametric study of the system specifications showed that the horizontal stiffness of the overall foundation is crucial to its functionality, while the superstructure turned out to be non-negligible when tuning the resonators. Furthermore, storage tanks are commonly connected to pipeline system, which can be damaged by the interaction between tank and pipeline during seismic events. Due to the complex and nonlinear response of pipeline systems, the coupled tank-pipeline behaviour becomes increasingly difficult to represent through numerical models, which lead to the experimental study of a foundation-tank-pipeline setup. Under the aid of a hybrid simulation, only the pipeline needed to be represented via a physical substructure, while both tank and Metafoundation were modelled as numerical substrucutres and coupled to the pipeline. The results showed that the foundation can effectively reduce the stresses in the tank and, at the same time, limit the displacements imposed on the pipeline. Leading up on this, an optimization algorithm was developed in the frequency domain, under the consideration of superstructure and ground motion spectrum. The advantages of optimizing in the frequency domain were on the one hand the reduction of computational effort, and on the other hand the consideration of the stochastic nature of the earthquake. Based on this, two different performance indices, investigating interstory drifts and energy dissipation, revealed that neither superstructure nor ground motion can be disregarded when designing a metamaterial-based foundation. Moreover, a 4 m tall optimized foundation, designed to remain elastic when verified with a response spectrum analysis at a return period of 2475 years (according to NTC 2018), reduced the tanks base shear on average by 30%. These results indicated that the foundation was feasible and functional in terms of construction practices and dynamic response, yet unpractical from an economic point of view. In order to tackle the issue of reducing the uneconomic system size, a negative stiffness mechanism was invented and implemented into the foundation as a periodic structure. This mechanism, based on a local instability, amplified the metamaterial like properties and thereby enhanced the overall system performance. Note that due to the considered instability, the device exerted a nonlinear force-displacement relationship, which had the interesting effect of reducing the band-gap instead of increasing it. Furthermore, time history analyses demonstrated that with 50% of the maximum admissible negative stiffness, the foundation could be reduced to 1/3 of its original size, while maintaining its performance. Last but not least, a study on wire ropes as resonator suspension was conducted. Their nonlinear behaviour was approximated with the Bouc Wen model, subsequently linearized by means of stochastic techniques and finally optimized with the algorithm developed earlier. The conclusion was that wire ropes could be used as a more realistic suspension mechanism, while maintaining the high damping values required by the optimized foundation layouts. In sum, a metamaterial-based foundation system is developed and studied herein, with the main findings being: (i) a structure of this type is feasible under common construction practices; (ii) the shear stiffness of the system has a fundamental impact on its functionality; (iii) the superstructure cannot be neglected when studying metamaterial-based foundations; (iv) the complete coupled system can be tuned with an optimization algorithm based on calculations in the frequency domain; (v) an experimental study suggests that the system could be advantageous to connected pipelines; (vi) wire ropes may serve as resonator suspension; and (vii) a novel negative stiffness mechanism can effectively improve the system performance.

This PhD thesis provides design strategies to control changes produced in mountains places and landscapes following constructions of roads. Strategies are based on the activation of unexpressed potentialities in places, although compromised, characterized by presence of roads. With the term unexpressed potentialities we refer to functions, attitudes, uses which, during the process of road realization, have not found an appropriate design solution. Topic of the thesis is to demonstrate that these design gaps can be properly addressed by an architecture project, obtaining two results: create a link between places, landscapes and roads and consolidate the participation of architecture discipline in a field (roads production) in which, today in Italy, it is less integrated than others. Changes in mountain landscapes are characterized by morphology and orography of the territory crossed: the factor that most influences in this direction is the verticality of the space. This specificity is discussed in the thesis through the analysis of road segments, infrastructure nodes or other specific situations, divided according to the topography in which there are: high gradients, slope or bottom of valleys. Specific characteristics which correspond to the three different orographic situations are explained by an interpretative study of the cross section, highlighting the potentiality of the space related with its vertical dimension. Most study cases belong to the geographical area of Trentino Alto Adige, an Italian region characterized by mountain landscapes. Some study cases are taken from other Italian regions or known experiences of the international context. The proposed strategies are developed through study of architectural projects, joined by devices that interpret the vertical (overlapping, slope and difference in altitude) of the spaces, reproposable in cases of mountain road. All strategies can be applied at any step of road production, from concept to design to construction. In addition, and we assume that this is the most frequent case, can be applied ex post, when the road is built, intervening to change situations already in place.

[pt] A dificuldade de se prever movimento de ativos financeiros é objeto de estudo de diversos autores. A fim de se obter ganhos, se faz necessário estimar a direção (subida ou descida) e a magnitude do retorno do ativo no qual pretende-se comprar ou vender. A proposta desse trabalho consiste em desenvolver um modelo de otimização matemática com variáveis binárias capaz de prever movimentos de subidas e descidas de ativos financeiros e utilizar um modelo de otimização de portfólio para avaliar os resultados obtidos. O modelo de previsão será baseado no Support Vector Machine (SVM), no qual faremos modificações na regularização do modelo tradicional. Para o gerenciamento de portfólio será utilizada otimização robusta. As técnicas de otimização estão sendo cada vez mais aplicadas no gerenciamento de portfólio, pois são capazes de lidar com os problemas das incertezas introduzidas na estimativa dos parâmetros. Vale ressaltar que o modelo desenvolvido é data-driven, i.e, as previsões são feitas utilizando sinais não-lineares baseados em dados de retorno/preço histórico passado sem ter nenhum tipo de intervenção humana. Como os preços dependem de muitos fatores é de se esperar que um conjunto de parâmetros só consiga descrever a dinâmica dos preços dos ativos financeiros por um pequeno intervalo de dias. Para capturar de forma mais precisa essa mudança na dinâmica, a estimação dos parâmetros dos modelos é feita em janela móvel. Para testar a acurácia dos modelos e os ganhos obtidos foi feito um estudo de caso utilizando 6 ativos financeiros das classes de moedas, renda fixa, renda variável e commodities. Os dados abrangem o período de 01/01/2004 até 30/05/2018 totalizando um total de 3623 cotações diárias. Considerando os custos de transações e os resultados out-of-sample obtidos no período analisado percebe-se que a carteira de investimentos desenvolvida neste trabalho exibe resultados superiores aos dos índices tradicionais com risco limitado. / [en] The difficulty of predicting the movement of financial assets is the subject of study by several authors. In order to obtain gains, it is necessary to estimate the direction (rise or fall) and the magnitude of the return on the asset in which it is intended to be bought or sold. The purpose of this work is to develop a mathematical optimization model with binary variables capable of predicting up and down movements of financial assets and using a portfolio optimization model to evaluate the results obtained. The prediction model will be based on the textit Support Vector Machine (SVM), in which we will make modifications in the regularization of the traditional model. For the portfolio management will be used robust optimization. The robust optimization techniques are being increasingly applied in portfolio management, since they are able to deal with the problems of the uncertainties introduced in the estimation of the parameters. It is noteworthy that the developed model is data-driven, i.e., the predictions are made using nonlinear signals based on past historical price / return data without any human intervention. As prices depend on many factors it is to be expected that a set of parameters can only describe the dynamics of the prices of financial assets for a small interval of days. In order to more accurately capture this change in dynamics, the estimation of model parameters is done in a moving window To test the accuracy of the models and the gains obtained, a case study was made using 6 financial assets of the currencies, fixed income, variable income and commodities classes. The data cover the period from 01/01/2004 until 05/30/2018 totaling a total of 3623 daily quotations. Considering the transaction costs and out-of-sample results obtained in the analyzed period, it can be seen that the investment portfolio developed in this work shows higher results than the traditional indexes with limited risk.

[pt] Grandes empresas de mídias digitais adotaram métodos ágeis para desenvolver produtos em ciclos mais curtos. Com isso, o tempo para testar as interfaces foi reduzido. Através de observações, verificou-se que nem sempre os testes curtos respondem a todas as perguntas que precisam de investigação junto aos usuários. Com o objetivo de propor uma metodologia de avaliação de usabilidade empírica, desenvolvida especificamente para uma melhor adequação às necessidades das equipes que desenvolvem produtos com métodos ágeis, realizou-se um estudo de caso, na Globo.com, com a equipe que projetou o site Receitas.com através da metodologia ágil Scrum. Com a realização de um grupo de foco, avaliou-se o cenário e definiram-se as questões de pesquisa. A partir daí, foi constatado que aplicação de somente uma técnica não iria responder à maior parte dessas questões. Além disso, caso fossem aplicadas de uma forma mais tradicional, poderia levar muito tempo. Como hipótese, acreditava-se que a criação e aplicação de uma metodologia de avaliação de usabilidade empírica, especificamente desenvolvida para melhor adequação às necessidades dessas equipes, seria capaz de resolver o problema, através da otimização e aplicação de técnicas em conjunto, como entrevista, eye tracking e teste de usabilidade. A metodologia foi validada através de entrevistas com cada integrante da equipe de desenvolvimento do Receitas.com. Os resultados obtidos comprovaram a hipótese da pesquisa. / [en] Big digital media companies have embraced agile methods to develop products in shorter cycles. With this, the time to test the interfaces was reduced. Through observations, we found that short tests do not always answer to all questions that need investigation with users. In order to propose a methodology for empirical usability evaluation, designed specifically to better fit the needs of teams who develop products with agile methods, we performed a case study in Globo.com, with the team that designed the site Receitas.com through the Scrum agile methodology. With the completion of a focus group, we assessed the scene and found the research questions. From there, it was found that application of only one technique would not answer most of these issues. Moreover, if applied in a more traditional way, could take a long time. As a hypothesis, it was believed that the creation and application of a methodology for empirical evaluation of usability, specifically designed to better match the needs of these teams, would be able to solve the problem through the optimization and application of techniques together, such as interview, eye tracking and usability testing. The methodology was validated through interviews with each team member s development Receitas.com. The results confirmed the hypothesis.

[pt] Trata-se de proposta ensaística de releitura das obras de quatro arquitetos modernos brasileiros - Lucio Costa, Affonso Eduardo Reidy, Oscar Niemeyer e Paulo Mendes da Rocha - sob o ponto de vista da tecnologia da construção. A investigação parte diretamente da experiência das obras e busca apontar algumas das soluções que tornaram possível a realização de uma engenhosa produção, não obstante a dificuldade de conciliação da teoria do projeto arquitetônico moderno internacional e a prática da construção no Brasil. / [en] This essay proposes a rereading of the works of four modern Brazilian architects - Lucio Costa, Affonso Eduardo Reidy, Oscar Niemeyer, and Paulo Mendes da Rocha - from a technical perspective. The study is based directly on the experience of these works and seeks to identify some of the solutions that have made possible the achievement of an ingenious production, despite the difficult task of conciliating the theory of international modern architectural project with Brazilian building construction technology.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T13:48:39Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Luara Landulpho Alves Lopes.pdf: 1188252 bytes, checksum: 5f8ae46e5257084af7ad8efcc1ae5f14 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-10-23 / At the end of the 1970s, the First United Nations Conference on Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries, held in Buenos Aires, has given visibility to the debate on new cooperation arrangements. The meeting in Buenos Aires, albeit limited, served to systematize the discourse on TCDC, and also contributed to suggest a different conception of international cooperation. Thus, the dissertation aims to raise the terms of the contemporary debate on Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries (TCDC) and locate the United States - more specifically, the Brazilian Cooperation Agency - in this debate. We defend the idea according to which Brazil has contributed, through its activity of TCDC, with the horizontalisation of cooperation discourse and practice. That is, we believe that the performance of the Brazilian Cooperation Agency carrying out projects and participating in international forums regarding TCDC has helped to spread a more balanced conception of international cooperation, in contrast to the predominant design in traditional arrangements, North x South, of international aid / No final da década de 1970, a Primeira Conferência das Nações Unidas sobre Cooperação Técnica entre Países em Desenvolvimento, realizada em Buenos Aires, conferiu visibilidade ao debate sobre os novos arranjos de cooperação. O encontro em Buenos Aires serviu para sistematizar, ainda que de forma limitada, o discurso sobre CTPD, e contribuiu também para sugerir uma concepção diferente de cooperação internacional. Assim, a monografia tem como objetivo levantar os termos do debate contemporâneo sobre Cooperação Técnica entre Países em Desenvolvimento (CTPD) e localizar o Brasil mais especificamente, a Agência Brasileira de Cooperação nesse debate. Defendemos a idéia segundo a qual o Brasil tem contribuído, através da sua atividade de CTPD, com a horizontalização do discurso sobre cooperação. Ou seja, acreditamos que a atuação da ABC em projetos e fóruns internacionais sobre CTPD tenha ajudado a difundir uma concepção mais simétrica de cooperação internacional, contrastando com a concepção predominante nos arranjos tradicionais, Norte x Sul, de ajuda internacional

Every day, billions of mobile network log data (commonly defined as Call Detailed Records, or CDRs) are generated by cell phones operators. These data provide inspiring insights about human actions and behaviors, which are essentials in the development of context aware appli- cations and services. This potential demand has fostered major research activities in a variety of domains such as social and economic development, urban planning, and health prevention. The major challenge of this thesis is to interpret CDR for human activity recognition, in the light of background knowledge of the CDR data context. Indeed each entry of the CDR is as- sociated with a context, which describes the temporal and spatial location of the user when a particular network data has been generated by his/her mobile devices. Knowing, by leveraging available Web 2.0 data sources, (e.g., Openstreetmap) this research thesis proposes to develop a novel model from combination of logical and statistical reasoning standpoints for enabling human activity inference in qualitative terms. The results aimed at compiling human behavior predictions into sets of classification tasks in the CDRs. Our research results show that Point of Interest (POI)s are a good proxy for predicting the content of human activities in an area. So the model is proven to be effective for predicting the context of human activity, when its total level could be efficiently observed from cell phone data records.

Smart energy city (SEC) development is a component of the urban development initiative smart city, which has been a popular response to the global energy challenge in Europe during the past two decades. SEC development aims to increase the sustainability of urban energy systems and services. Since 2011, SEC development has been supported by the European Commission as part of the Strategic Energy Technology plan (SET-Plan) and through the European Union Programmes for Research and Technological Development (specifically FP7 and Horizon 2020). This, along with the promising vision of SEC development and considerable financial support by the private sector, has encouraged numerous European cities to initiate SEC projects. Successful implementation of these projects at the urban scale is crucial to achievement of urban energy objectives and sustainability of future urban development. The here presented thesis aims to support urban decision-makers towards successful implementation of urban scale smart energy city development in Europe. The study includes three stages. The first stage is dedicated to conceptual analysis. Within this stage, I conceptualized smart city through a keyword analysis of existing literature on the concept. Then, within the context of the smart city concept, I defined SEC development through literature review and expert knowledge elicitation. The second stage is dedicated to empirical investigation. Using the definition of SEC development, I distinguished and investigated 43 previously implemented SEC projects to identify common barriers that hinder successful implementation of SEC development. In addition, I proposed a new multi-dimensional methodology that allows a simultaneous prioritization of barriers against their probability, the level of impact, scale, origin, and relationship with other barriers. The third stage of the thesis is dedicated to learning methodologies that allow efficient transfer of knowledge from the past SEC experiences to the new SEC developments. I introduced the application of two learning methodologies that support decision-makers to predict barriers to the implementation of a new SEC project: case-based learning and decision tree learning. The former predicts barriers based on internal similarities between the new SEC project and the past projects. The latter uses the past projects and creates a predictive model for each barrier based on internal and external project characteristics. These models are later used to predict barriers to a new SEC project. Both methodologies were tested in a new SEC project, named SINFONIA. The conceptual analysis revealed that application of information and communication technologies, the collaboration of multiple stakeholders, integration of multiple urban domains, and sustainability evaluation are the constant characteristics (i.e. principles) of smart city and SEC development. It resulted in, to the best of my knowledge, the first multi-dimensional and comprehensive definition of SEC development, revealing its principles, objectives, domains of intervention, stakeholders, time and spatial dimensions. Furthermore, a list of smart energy solutions in each SEC domain of intervention was provided. The empirical investigation of the past SEC projects resulted in the identification of 35 common barriers to the implementation of SEC development, categorized in policy, administrative, legal, financial, market, environmental, technical, social, and information and awareness dimensions. The barrier prioritization showed that barriers related to collaborative planning, external funding of the project, providing skilled personnel, and fragmented ownership should be the key action priorities for SEC project coordinators. Application of case-based learning methodology resulted in identifying five past SEC projects that were the most similar to the SINFONIA project in terms of project internal characteristics. Investigating the barriers to the similar projects revealed that fragmented ownership is the most probable barrier to implementation of SINFONIA project. Application of the decision trees methodology resulted in generation of 20 barrier models, four of which showed a very good performance in prediction of barriers: lack of values and interest in energy optimization measures, time-consuming requirements by European Commission concerning reporting and accountancy, economic crisis, and local unfavorable regulations for innovative technologies. None of these four barriers were predicted to occur in the SINFONIA project. The application of this method in the SINFONIA showed a higher predicting power when a barrier was absent. The findings of the here presented thesis contribute to successful implementation of SEC development by supporting decision-makers in different phases of SEC projects. The results of the conceptual analysis contribute to a common understanding and foster the dialogue on the concept among various SEC stakeholders, particularly decision-makers and urban planners. The results of the empirical investigation lead to a better comprehension and evaluation of the barriers to the implementation of SEC projects in order to efficiently allocate resources to mitigate barriers. The proposed learning methodologies proved to be promising in helping decision-makers to identify similar projects to a new SEC development and to predict barriers to the implementation of new SEC projects. The thesis concludes that SEC is an outstanding urban development that can make a valuable contribution to the sustainability of urban energy systems. The specific characteristics of SEC development pose new challenges to the future smart and sustainable urban planning. Nevertheless, SEC development brings about unprecedented opportunities for integration and application of advanced quantitative techniques with current urban planning methods. This allows efficient knowledge transfer in not only intra-urban but also inter-urban levels in order to provide a collaborative, integrated and constructive movement towards successful implementation of SEC projects and sustainability of future urban development.

[pt] O objetivo da dissertação é avaliar a gestão da função metrológica em uma unidade de exploração e produção de óleo e gás de uma grande empresa de energia no Brasil e propor ações de melhoria a partir dos resultados do diagnóstico da referida função. Desde a emissão da Portaria Conjunta n°1 ANP/Inmetro, em junho de 2000, as atividades de exploração e produção de petróleo e gás natural no Brasil passaram por um acelerado processo de reestruturação organizacional e de adequação das instalações de medição para atender ao novo marco regulatório. Nesse contexto, a motivação da pesquisa vincula-se a uma real necessidade de melhoria da gestão da função metrológica em uma unidade de exploração e produção de óleo e gás natural da Petrobras, particularmente no que tange à consolidação da cultura metrológica e ao desenvolvimento de competências associadas a novos requisitos de medição de vazão de óleo e gás natural. A metodologia compreende: (i) pesquisa bibliográfica e documental sobre os temas centrais; (ii) proposição de modelo conceitual para avaliação da gestão da função metrológica; (iii) elaboração e aplicação do instrumento de pesquisa; (iv) estudo de caso da Unidade de Operações de Exploração e Produção da Petrobras no Espírito Santo e de quatro unidades incorporadas ao caso; (v) proposição de ações frente aos desafios e oportunidades reveladas no diagnóstico situacional. Destacam-se como resultados da pesquisa: (i) o modelo conceitual para avaliação da gestão da função metrológica, com foco na medição de vazão de óleo e gás natural; (ii) o diagnóstico da situação atual da gestão da função metrológica na referida Unidade e em quatro unidades incorporadas ao estudo de caso; (iii) mapeamento dos desafios e oportunidades associados à efetiva gestão da função metrológica nas unidades analisadas. Como conclusão, a pesquisa mostra que o modelo conceitual proposto foi adequado para os fins a que se destina, constituindo um importante instrumento de avaliação e retroalimentação para a gestão da função metrológica. Esse modelo poderá ser disseminado em outros contextos organizacionais de exploração e produção de óleo e gás natural. / [en] The objective of this dissertation is two-fold: (i) to assess the management of metrological function of an oil and gas exploration and production unit within a large energy enterprise in Brazil; and (ii) to propose recommendations for its improvement. Since the creation of Portaria Conjunta n 1 ANP/Inmetro, in June 2000, oil and gas exploration and production activities in Brazil have suffered an accelerated process of organizational reengineering and adapted all their measurement installations to attend the new regulatory framework. In this context, the motivation of this research arose from Petrobras’needs to have an assessment tool capable of measuring efficiency and efficacy of its metrological function, incorporating in the analytical framework elements concerning organizational culture and development of competences towards attendance of new metrological requirements. The methodology comprises: (i) bibliographic and documentary research on the central themes of dissertation; (ii) propose of a conceptual model for assess metrological function management, which links theoretical approaches reviewed; (iii) development and application of a survey questionnaire, based on this conceptual framework; (iv) case study focusing on the metrological function at Exploration and Production Operational Unit of Espírito Santo and its four subunities; (v) formulation of improvement actions for Petrobras metrological function at the selected unities, and suggestions for future research and replication in other organizational contexts. As a conclusion, it can be said that the proposed assessment model fulfilled expectations and assumptions formulated at the very beginning of this research. According to the opinion of managers and teams involved, the model is an useful management and learning tool for improve the management of metrological function and has a large potential for replication in other organizational contexts from the empirical evidences achieved.

Redox Flow Batteries are chemical based energy storage systems that accumulate energy in liquid electrolytes. Dissolved redox active substances undergo redox reactions in an electrochemical cell and so charge and discharge a battery. Recently, the introduction of organic materials as electrolytes raised research interest. Electrolytes that operate with the bromine/bromide redox couple are interesting due to their high energy density and fast reversible kinetics. They are used in combination with several anodic chemistries (e.g. Zinc, Hydrogen, Quinone), including organic materials.Due to the corrosive and volatile nature of bromine, practical electrolytes use Bromine Complexing Agents (BCAs) in order to bind bromine in a less volatile form and deal with safety issues. These additives have a strong influence on the battery’s operation by influencing the concentration of redox active species, the cell voltage and the electrolyte conductivity. Nevertheless, very little is known about the real properties of aqueous acidic bromine electrolytes, both in pure dilution and in presence of BCAs, which influence on the electrolyte is not predictable so far. The aim of this PhD project is to provide a comprehensive understanding of the behavior of an electrolyte based on bromine and bromide, with particular reference to the one used in semi-organic flow batteries. Along this work an analysis on the performance of a AQDS-Bromine flow battery cell was executed and an extensive study on the physico-chemical behavior of the positive electrolyte was developed. A review of the flow battery technology and of the metrics and methods available for diagnostics was firstly performed as a basis to define macro characteristics,such as State of Charge (SoC) and State of Health (SoH). The cycling behavior of an AQDS-Bromine flow battery was investigated by cell tests and possible degradation mechanisms have been highlighted and explained by interpretation of electrochemical measurements. Following, a broad characterization of the bromine-based electrolyte was performed, producing extended experimental data on physico-chemical properties and a modeling framework for the prediction of the electrolyte behavior.